Friday, June 20, 2008

So, I have some of my ATC's at the Ankeny Art Center (that link on that page takes you to a photo contest, I sure hope they're gonna fix that), and I told my mom I'd help her out with an ATC sewing workshop tomorrow. She calls me up last night and asks what I'm doing tomorrow night (tonight), and I said making ATC's for the swap (they're also doing a swap with the artists tomorrow), and then she complains that she needs me to help her organize for this workshop cause it's the last minute, and I said that I didn't know what she was doing. She said well you never took an interest in it. I told her I'd help out with this workshop a few weeks ago, and she never brought it up again, and somehow it's my fault???? So, now I'm seriously debating whether I really want to go along with her tomorrow (I believe I will end up doing it, because I did tell her I'd help, but being in the car for 30+ minutes there and back with a grumpy mom is not so fun).And in this same phone call, she asks how far I'm on this 2nd set of windows (see earlier post), and I told her I hadn't been home all day, and then she proceeds to complain, saying I had to have time in there. If I didn't have to do them, I wouldn't, but I don't really have a choice.

Thursday, June 19, 2008

And the countdown has begun: 6 days, 7 hours and 43 minutes.Found in this week's Sgt Grit Newsletter:Sgt Grit, I found this on www.downrange.tv a forum for shooters and gun owners Thomas B.The USMC in Afghanistan.....This provides a little insight into the modern Marine Corps fighting terrorists. This is from a Reconnaissance Marine currently in Afghanistan. He talks like a Marine in the field- and he is worthy of our thoughts and prayers as are all of our military deployed in some God-forsaken place.It's freezing here. I'm sitting on hard, cold dirt between rocks and shrubs at the base of the Hindu Kush mountains along the Dar 'yoi Pomir River watching a hole that leads to a tunnel that leads to a cave. Stake out, my friend, and no pizza delivery for thousands of miles.I also glance at the area around my a$s every ten to fifteen seconds to avoid another scorpion sting. I've actually given up battling the chiggers and sand fleas, but them scorpions give a jolt like a cattle prod. Hurts like a b*stard.The antidote tastes like transmission fluid but God bless the Marine Corps for the five vials of it in my pack.The one truth the Taliban cannot escape is that, believe it or not, they are human beings, which means they have to eat food and drink water. That requires couriers and that's where an old bounty hunter like me comes in handy. I track the couriers, locate the tunnel entrances and storage facilities, type the info into the handheld, shoot the coordinates up to the satellite link that tells the air commanders where to drop the hardware, we bash some heads for a while, then I track and record the new movement.It's all about intelligence. We haven't even brought in the snipers yet. These scurrying rats have no idea what they're in for. We are but days away from cutting off supply lines and allowing the eradication to begin.I dream of Bin Laden waking up to find me standing over him with my boot on his throat as I spit a bloody ear into his face and plunge my nickel-plated Bowie knife through his frontal lobe. But you know me. I'm a romantic. I've said it before and Ill say it again: This country blows, man. It's not even a country. There are no roads, there's no infrastructure, there's no government. This is an inhospitable, rockpit, sh!thole ruled by eleventh century warring tribes. There are no jobs here like we know jobs.Afghanistan offers two ways for a man to support his family: join the opium trade or join the army. That's it. Those are your options. Oh, I forgot, you can also live in a refugee camp and eat plum-sweetened, crushed beetle paste and squirt mud like a goose with stomach flu if that's your idea of a party. But the smell alone of those 'tent cities of the walking dead' is enough to hurl you into the poppy fields to cheerfully scrape bulbs for eighteen hours a day.I've been living with these Tajiks and Uzbeks and Turkmen and even a couple of Pushtins for over a month and a half now and this much I can say for sure: These guys, all of em, are Huns. Actual, living Huns. They LIVE to fight. Its what they do. Its ALL they do.They have no respect for anything, not for their families or for each other or for themselves. They claw at one another as a way of life. They play polo with dead calves and force their five- year-old sons into human cockfights to defend the family honor. Huns, roaming packs of savage, heartless beasts who feed on each others barbarism. Cavemen with AK 47's. Then again, maybe I'm just cranky.I'm freezing my a$s off on this stupid hill because my lap warmer is running out of juice and I can't recharge it until the sun comes up in a few hours.Oh yeah! You like to write letters, right? Do me a favor, Bizarre. Write a letter to CNN and tell Wolf and Anderson and that awful, sneering, pompous Aaron Brown to stop calling the Taliban 'smart.' They are not smart. I suggest CNN invest in a dictionary because the word they are looking for is 'cunning.' The Taliban are cunning, like jackals and hyenas and wolverines. They are sneaky and ruthless and, when confronted, cowardly. They are hateful, malevolent parasites who create nothing and destroy everything else. Smart. Pfft. Yeah, they're real smart.They've spent their entire lives reading only one book (and not a very good one, as books go) and consider hygiene and indoor plumbing to be products of the devil. They're still figuring out how to work a Bic lighter. Talking to a Taliban warrior about improving his quality of life is like trying to teach an ape how to hold a pen; eventually he just gets frustrated and sticks you in the eye with it.OK, enough. Snuffle will be up soon so I have to get back to my hole. Covering my tracks in the snow takes a lot of practice but I'm good at it. Please, I tell you and my fellow Americans to turn off the TV sets and move on with your lives.The story line you are getting from CNN and other news agencies is utter bullsh!t and designed not to deliver truth but rather to keep you glued to the screen through the commercials. We've got this one under control. The worst thing you guys can do right now is sit around analyzing what we're doing over here because you have no idea what we're doing and, really, you don't want to know. We are your military and we are doing what you sent us here to do.You wanna help? Buy Bonds America.Saucy JackSemper FidelisANSWERS to the astronomy quiz:1. Since 1976 NASA has been landing spacecraft on which of the following planets?Mars NASA's Phoenix Lander just set down on Mars in May 2008. There were a number of prior missions, starting in the 1970s.

2. Which of the following is no longer considered a planet? Pluto In 2006, the General Assembly of the International Astronomical Union decided that Pluto didn't meet all the criteria for a planet. Now there are, officially, eight planets in our solar system: Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune.

3. What is considered essential for life on any planet? Liquid water The search for water is a major reason for the current mission to Mars, which is looking for evidence of water and other conditions that could have supported life.

4. What is a blue moon? The second full moon in a calendar month The expression "once in a blue moon" comes from the fact that blue moons are rare.

5. Which telescope is currently orbiting in space? NASA's Hubbell Space Telescope The Hubbell telescope is in orbit around Earth. The Mt. Palomar telescope is near San Diego, California, and the twin Keck telescopes are at the top of Mauna Kea, a dormant volcano in Hawaii.

6. A comet is made of which of the following materials? Ice and dust Comets have a head composed of dust and ice. They are often described as "dirty snowballs."

7. What is a constellation? Stars that just look like a pattern from Earth but may have no relationship to one another Constellations are named patterns of stars. Many cultures, including the Babylonians, Greeks, and Romans, named the patterns after animals and objects.

8. The Big Dipper is part of which constellation? Ursa Major (Big Bear) The tip of the Big Dipper's handle forms the Bear's nose! Even though the Big Dipper isn't a constellation, it's one of the most widely recognized configurations in the sky.

9. How many stars are believed to be in a galaxy? Millions, billions, or more stars A galaxy is a big system of stars, gas, dust, and other elements that are gravitationally bound to one another and travel together. It consists of millions, billions, or more stars.

10. Our solar system is in which galaxy? The Milky Way Our galaxy, the Milky Way, consists of about two hundred billion stars. The word galaxy derives from gala, the Greek word for milk.

11. Which constellation includes five stars that form the letter W? Cassiopeia Cassiopeia can be seen in the Northern Hemisphere near the North Star. In Greek mythology, Cassiopeia was Andromeda's mother.

12. Which planet is known as the "evening star"? Venus Venus, while a planet, is brighter than most stars, Sometimes it is visible after sunset. At other times it is visible before sunrise. Then it is called the "morning star."

13. What is a shooting star or falling star? A meteor The bright streak of light created when a piece of rock or metal falls to Earth is called a "meteor" or "shooting star." The light is caused by heat created from air friction.

14. In 1962, who became the first American to orbit Earth? John Glenn In 1962, John Glenn orbited Earth three times. In 1969, Neil Armstrong and Edwin Aldrin became the first people ever to walk on the Moon. In 1983, Sally Ride was the first woman to orbit Earth.

Tuesday, June 17, 2008

Replying to Carrie's comment on my last post. Just make sure you don't tell my mom that, because she'll just blow you off. Kevin and have decided that she can't handle it if someone knows more about something than she does, or if they prove she's wrong. Like this weekend, she was commenting on how the weather people can't really predict a week in advance about the weather, and Kevin (who storm chases so knows these things), said meterologists can predict large storms about a week out, and she pretty much just brushed him off. I've noticed this when he gives us advice about certain things around the house, like the messed up job the guys did cementing the driveway, and about the large crack in the end of the driveway. Mom will basically change the subject. I wonder if she feels that way about my knowledge about criminal justice, come to think about it, she does like to argue a lot when I mention something about CJ and stuff in my textbooks.It sure makes me think about her when I start thinking on my own. Bet she hates that. Wouldn't want her daughter to have her own mind and say in her life.

Monday, June 16, 2008

UGH!! So my mother's having me do some work around the house for money. One of the projects I'm doing is sanding, staining and varnishing windows. She and my dad have decided it's $50.00 per window, I'm guessing if they were paying someone professional to do it, it'd be at least $100 a window. And if I didn't have to do this, these things would never get done.We had a conversation about my lack of cleanliness (OK, she talked, I kinda tuned her out. I've found that's the only way to keep her words and tone from cutting into me so much that she makes me cry), and she said if I was living in some other landlord's apartment that I would get kicked out. When I mentioned this to Kevin later in the day, he said no landlord would kick someone out for being messy. It's not like I have food sitting around collecting bugs or anything. I'm just a little slow at cleaning some stuff up, my floors need some vacuuming. I should bring up the fact that if you go into the first floor bathroom, you can see spots all around the toilet, I'm pretty sure you can all figure out what they are. And I'm the one who has sick habits? I don't think so, just because you can't handle the fact that my floors need vacuuming, doesn't mean I'm living in a house full of crap. She happens to vacuum like its religious, you may not be able to see anything on the floor, but dammit she has to vacuum all the damn time.And once again, I say, If I had the money I wouldn't be living here.I kinda wish I had the relationship with my parents and brother that Kevin has. He called his dad yesterday, and ended up spending 45 minutes on the phone with his mother, at least that much time with his dad, and then later in the day at least that much time with his brother. I don't know if it's because I live so close to my parents, that I'm their little girl, that I am so different than my brother, or what. But I wouldn't mind having that relationship with my family.

Thursday, June 12, 2008

Stolen from RainThe A to Z of MeAccent: I don't think I have oneBreakfast or no breakfast: I like breakfast food, only I usually don't eat breakfast.Chore I don’t care for: DishesDog or cat: Dog. Totally a dog personEssential electronics: Computer.Favorite cologne: Don't have oneGold or silver: white gold, cause it's not mainstreamHandbag I carry most often: I don't generally carry oneInsomnia: I don't usually have itJob Title: NAKids: None at the momentLiving arrangements: ApartmentMost admirable trait: honesty?Naughtiest childhood behavior: don't knowOvernight hospital stay: Not since I was bornPhobias: spiders,Quote: It's your life, how do you want to live it?Reason to smile: My boyfriend, good musicSiblings: an older brotherTime I wake up: sometime after 8Unusual skill or talent: my art?Vegetable I refuse to eat: asparagusWorst habit: not tellingX-rays: had 1Yummy stuff: anything sweetZoo animal I like most: lions

Monday, June 09, 2008

Thursday, June 05, 2008

Or at least the thing that has to come and screw up my life once a month. I was at Kevin's house tonight and I was gonna spend the night, only when I was in the bathroom, something told me that Aunt Flo might be coming for her visit early (like tomorrow), so I told him that and that I should go home seeing as how I had nothing there and I would be very grumpy and having cramps all day tomorrow. I'm pretty sure he didn't take it as the truth and that it was an excuse and took me home, he claimed (not in so many words) that he wasn't in a bad mood, but I could tell. And I really wanted to spend the night too.So today, I woke up figuring I wouldn't see Kevin all day because of the probability of storms, I call him about 11 and he says he won't be chasing today. So, I decided to walk to his house (4 mile walk, outside town), I did surprise him with that. After going somewhere to eat and picking up a bike he bought, he convinced me to get my (brother's) bike and ride around one of the parks. I haven't been on a bike since grade school, but as the old saying goes, yeah I did take to it pretty quickly. Kevin figures we rode about 11 miles today. My ass hurts. And the perfect ending to such a good day would be to spend the night at my boyfriend's house, but we all know that didn't happen. I feel really bad about it, I wanted to so bad, and I'm so disappointed I don't get to.